


Late night tea

by dontmindme_imafangirl



Series: Tumblr Angst Sentence Prompts [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Battlefield, Blue Paladin Allura (Voltron), Canon Universe, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hallucinations, Hurt Lance (Voltron), Insecure Lance (Voltron), Other, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships, Red Paladin Lance (Voltron), allura and lance friendship, allura being a badass
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-14
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2019-02-02 08:46:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12723360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dontmindme_imafangirl/pseuds/dontmindme_imafangirl
Summary: Tumblr angst sentence prompt: "You deserve something worse than death. Something worse than hell." + Platonic Allura/Lance.Lance thought he and Allura were growing more fond of each other, if the soft smiles and late night talks they shared was anything to go by.Lately he's started to wonder if he was wrong.





	Late night tea

*****

War is draining.

Physically, mentally, it’s something that can break the strongest of wills, bend the brightest of smiles.

So Lance gets it.

He gets that it’s normal for his eyes to feel dull oftentimes, for Hunk to need a hug that’s tighter than usual, for Pidge to need someone to vent to, hell, he even gets Keith’s need for a pat on the shoulder and a word of ‘good job out there’.

He gets it.

When he sees Allura, her lips a stern line, her bright eyes looking sunken, he knows it’s not just physical fatigue she feels.  
Lance takes it upon himself to bring a smile back to her face, see that same glow that made his heart skip beats return to her.

It was a fairly quiet day war-wise, the Castle hidden well into a pocket of the universe where there was some resemblance of peace, albeit momentarily.  
Their tasks for the day were primarily some training and a general maintenance of the Castle, something for which Allura took the most burden for.

He decided to tag along for her runs down the Castle’s hallways, offering to go in her stead to bring the different materials needed to re-assemble the maps in the control room, go fetch Pidge to perform some updates on the Castle’s systems, lifted heavy boxes of space clutter with a groan, even if he knew fully well that Allura could lift them like they were bird feathers.

She gave him an appreciative smile through it all, small and tired but there, and it could be enough, but Lance wanted more. He wanted to see her happy, content even in the slightest bit.

He took his chance during a quieter moment, leaning against the control panel Allura was working on with a lazy smirk, wiggling an eyebrow at Allura.

“Hey, hey ‘Llura.”

She sighed, not taking her eyes off of her work.

“What is it Lance?”

“Why did Kaltenecker go into the spaceship?”

She raised an eyebrow at that.  
“You brought Kaltenecker from your visit to the mall, what do you-“

“No, it’s because she wanted to see the Moo-oon. Get it?” he delivered the punch line, throwing his hands into finger guns her way.

Allura shook her head but said nothing, much to Lance’s dismay.

“Okay, how about this-“ he continued, trying to roll the dejection away from his body, “What’s the worst part of having a party in space?”

“Lance..”

“You have to _planet_.”

Allura clicked her tongue, her eyebrows furrowing as her hands hovered over the panel.

She turned her head towards Lance, the smile gone from her face.

“Lance, could you perhaps go see if anyone else needs some help? I need to focus on this if I want to be done soon.”

It didn’t hurt.  
No, that look definitely didn’t hurt Lance, the dejection definitely didn’t circle at his feet, climbing up his body like rose thorns.

He nodded and left the control room, his hands in his jacket’s pockets and his head hung low.

He thought he and Allura were doing better. Were becoming friends.  
She’d smile at him more, laugh at his jokes and put a hand on his shoulder when he wasn’t as chatty as usual, asking him if everything’s alright.

They’d spend nights just sitting with a cup of juniberry tea in their hands, a small reminiscent of Allura’s home, taking in it’s scent as they talked about everything and anything; their home planets, their favourite music, their missions, even about the other paladins, Allura teasing Lance about his pretend rivalry with Keith, Lance teasing her in turn for her little mishaps with Blue.

They were bonding.

So why did it feel like they were back to square one lately?

Allura would smile at him less, their night chats becoming less and less frequent with the rigorous training and ongoing battles, free time becoming a scarce and sacred good the paladins cherished.

He wanted to spend some of that free time with her.

He just wasn’t sure she felt the same way.

******

There’s the sound of explosions from behind him, ahead of him a fleet of Galra soldiers fast approaching, some of which he recognises as Generals of Zarkon that they’d fought once or twice before.

This was planned, Lance figured, a grand battle that managed to catch the paladins off guard, while they were delivering supplies and aid to one of the planets that had joined the coallition; and suddenly there was the sound of blazing sirens and the view of purple ships fast approaching.

However the locals were on Voltron’s side, fighting viligiantly against the Galra, and the fight was soon winding down.

For good measure, Keith, Hunk and Pidge took to their lions, delivering fatal blows to the battlecruisers above them, leaving Lance and Allura to finish the fight on the ground and help the locals protect their homes.

When the last sentry fell with an electric slash from Allura’s whip, Lance figured that was it. There was no enemy in sight, not as far as Lance’s eye could see.

With a sigh he lowered his gun, bringing a hand to wipe the sweat off his forehead.

He turned to Allura with a wide grin, about to give her a thumbs up when he saw her eyes widen, her mouth forming his name.

But it was a minute too late, he realised, as he felt the sting of something hit the nape of his neck, figuring there must’ve been one last sentry left standing right behind him, delivering one last blow.

The last thing he saw was Allura’s whip extending, static blue slashing through the one that shot Lance, her feet immediately rushing towards him.

He could’ve sworn he heard her say “Please, please stay with me.”

But he could be wrong.

****

His eyes opened dreadily, a headache pounding all across his head, a pain that tingled from his legs to the tips of his fingers.

He was cushioned, his head resting somewhere soft, and his eyes opened to see a pair of blue eyes looking down at him with a gentle light, dashes of curling silver surrounding his peripheral view.

Allura, his mind offered, and he nodded to himself despite the pain; Allura was cradling him, his head was resting on her thighs, her hands were cusping his face-

But wait, when did she change into her dress? Why was he still in his paladin armour, scraped and torn from the fight?

He turned his head to look around him; the once smoke-filled sky was clear, and the barren ground of the planet they were in was now laced with tall green grass and these flowers, their strong scent familiar, comforting even; where..where _were_ they?

“Do you smell them? The flowers?”

Allura spoke from above him, her knuckles grazing his cheek.

“They’re…I’ve smelt them before.”

His voice was hoarse, but there, coming out with raspy breaths.

“It’s juniberry flowers. The ones we brew that tea with. Remember? We had some seeds of them on the Castle, and managed to raise some in the garden room.”

“But these; these are everywhere” he noticed blankly. The entire vicinity was spun with juniberry flowers, soft pink petals moving along with the wind.

Allura offered no solution to his questioned statement, opting instead to smile at him with a certain fondness, turning his head so he would face her.

“Lance. Oh Lance. Is this what you wished for? For me to cradle you like this and tell you everything’s alright?”

He tried sitting up, startled by her words, but she kept him in place with a hand pushing on his chest, her once gentle smile turning into a menace, a type of rancour he’d never seen on her before, never thought she could ever possibly express, not the Allura he knew, the one that laughed along with the mice’s shenanigans, that tried to be fair and just even under the hardest of circumstances.

“You think anyone out there would ever want to hold you like this? That I would?”

She faked a gasp, her eyes widening before the malicious intent seeped back onto her face.

“Perhaps you thought we were _friends_? That couldn’t be it, now is it?”

He struggled against her hold, noticing her baby blues turn into yellow, her smirk widening devilishly.

“Oh Lance no, why would I possibly ever like you? Were you not aware of the hate I harbour for you?”

He managed to break free, rolling away from her and trying to get up on shaky legs that could barely carry him.

She let him, and even as he stood to his full height he still felt small, still looked up to see her, her face bent to look at him with that same venomous expression, malaise tightening over his heart, adrenaline pumping through his veins.

“Puny human, I don’t _want_ you around. I don’t wish you to be near me yet you pester me like no other.”

He covered his ears, falling back onto his weakened knees.

“I would reckon you’d realise it by now, what my feelings towards you are.”

His breath were becoming dry heaves, his pulse quickening and thudding so loudly in his ears that he could swear he felt his vessels burst with the force, felt blood dripping through his nose.

“Do you know what you deserve, Lance?”

He tried to curl into a ball, to drown out the sounds of Allura’s voice, now distorted and distant but surrounding him all the while.

“You deserve something worse than death. Something worse than hell.”

He felt his breath hitch and he screamed like never before, tears dripping and mixing with the blood on his lips, as he begged, asked her why, _why_ does she hate him? What has he done to her? Why?

Another bout of panic and his vision blurred, the back of his eyelids coloured yellow, the smell of burning flowers coming through his bloodied nose.

******

He shot up from where he was lying, breaths short and shallow until he orientated himself.

He looked to his hands, covered to the wrist with a satin fabric that he recognised, his thighs covered with a blanket whose feel he knew.

This was his bed, back at the Castle. His blue pyjamas.

He looked to the side.

The door was in its proper place. His Blue Lion slippers, the ones he refused to part with, were by his bedside, a cup of water sitting on the table to the side.

He felt something rustle the sheets and he turned to face it, his hands balling into fists.

There was a body sitting on the foot of his bed, a pair of eyes looking towards him, worry evident in them even in the darkened room, only illuminated by a low blue glow coming from the nightlight he managed to find during another space mall visit.

He hears the person breath a sigh of relief, scuttling slightly closer to him.

“Lance! Are you..are you alright?”

His eyes adjusting, he took in the sight off Allura, her hair tied loosely in a ponytail, her armour exchanged for the suit she usually wore-not the dress, Lance noticed, breathing his own slight sigh of relief.

“What happened?” he managed after a moment, his throat sore.

Allura took the cup of water and offered it to him, Lance taking hold of it with a curt nod.

“You were injured. There was a sentry right behind you I-I thought it for dead before it moved, but before I could warn you it fired a shot to your neck.”

Instinctively Lance rubbed the back of his neck, finiding a bandage on its nape.

“It wasn’t a typical bullet. It was something akin to a needle, and then you were screaming…Coran analysed it while you were asleep, along with a sample of your blood, and it seems to be Salvia Divinorum.”

Lance winced.

“Sa-who?”

“It’s a potent hallucinogenic plant, commonly found amongst many planets. Innocent on its own, but dangerous when it enters the bloodstream.”

Lance nodded, taking it all in.

Then, the juniberry field, Allura-oh god, Allura-

She stayed silent, recognition flashing on her face as soon as she took note of what Lance had started to realise.

“You were..you were screaming, crying. I held you still so you wouldn’t injure yourself further and you asked me..you asked me why I hate you.”

Lance gulped, averting his gaze from Allura’s, but catching sight of her pained expression from the corner of his eye, her hands tightening their hold on the bedsheets.

“Lance..why would you ever think I hate you?”

He tried to shrug as nonchalantly as he could master, feeling the sweat that accumulated on his palms.

“Come on Allura, you said it yourself, I was under the control of this hallucinogen…thing.”

“Salvia Divinorum only brings to life the nightmares held in subconscious thoughts. What you said was what you felt, not what the plant wanted you to see.”

He chuckled nervously, Allura’s gaze becoming more intent on his face.

“Lance” she started again, her voice stern yet worried at the same time, “why would you think I hate you?”

He shook his head, the smile like a tic on his lips.

“I mean, it’s not like there’s much to like so..”

Allura gasped, her eyebrows forming creases on her forehead with how furrowed they were.

“Lance..no, why would you ever think that?”

He said nothing, bringing his knees to tuck under his chin, giving Allura more space to shuffle near him, placing her hands over his on his legs.

“Do you know how much I admire you Lance?”

That caught him off-guard.

“You were thrown in such a situation, yet managed to move through everything with a smile, constantly trying your best to make sure everyone was alright, even to the detirment of your own mental health.”

She smiled, soft and gentle just the way he knew her to.

“You’re so talented, and even in the worse of situations, you always know the right thing to say, and you’ve helped me through so many times..I couldn’t possibly ever hate you Lance.”

She shook her head, eyes downcast, her hands still over Lance’s.

“If anything, I figured you should be harbouring some hate towards _me_ …”

Lance’s back straightened, an eyebrow raising.

“Say _what_ now?! Why would I?!”

“Well, it’d make sense, wouldn’t it? I kept treating you so coldly at first, and then with everything that happened with the Blue Lion…”

It was Lance’s turn to shake his head, tightening his fingers over hers.

“Allura, _no_. Blue chose a paladin, and if you ask me, she made the best possible choice. You have bonded with her so much, and brought out abilities I never discovered even when piloting her for so long. She’s good for you, and you’re good for her. There’s no hate there.”

She bit her lip, nose scrunching.

“But I was so..stubborn at first, and wobbly at best.”

“So what? It was the first time you ever piloted her! Do you remember how bad _we_ all were at the beginning? God, if anything, you were so freakin’ badass and the way you used the blue bayard? It’s crazy cool!”

He knew he was ranting by now but continued, his mouth running a million miles faster than his mind.

“Like it’s honestly unfair, not only you’re absolutely beautiful, you’re also so cool and talented, it’s just-“

He stumbled at that, only just realising what he said.

Allura’s cheeks darkened, her chocolate skin turning molten, a teasing grin soon forming on her lips.

“I’m not letting you live that down, I hope you’re aware of it” she grinned.

Lance returned the smile with a shrug.  
“I am aware, yes. Just, don’t make _too_ much fun of me in front of the others.”

She batted her eyelashes, cocking her head to the side.

“I’m not about to make a promise I can’t keep.”

They laughed over it with soft huffs, content for a moment in the silence.

“Look, my behaviour towards you when we first met..it was uncalled for. It made you uncomfortable, and you were right to treat me coolly. But..I do want to be a friend to you. If-if you’d like that too.”

The smile on her lips was bright enough to reach her eyes, enough to bring the whole room to life.

She slipped her hands away from Lance, opting instead to throw her full weight onto him for a hug, toppling them both over onto the mattress with a huff of laughter.

“We already are friends Lance” she said, as if stating the obcvious, pointing an accusing finger to his chest, “or need I remind you of all the…how did you call it? Blackmail material?”

He nodded with a gulp.

“Yes, so need I remind you of all the blackmail material I have gathered throughout this friendship?”

Lance quietly shook his head no, ready to beg Allura not to say another word.  
“How about not so long ago, when you told me you thought Keith’s hair actually kind of suits him-“

He threw a hand to her mouth, his face turning to mock disgust when she made to bite his index finger that was on level with her bottom lip, his try to silence her going awfully wrong.

They teased one another, like old childhood friends would, until drowsiness found itself on Lance’s eyelids, this time a welcomed guise, his heart content and breaths more easy than ever before.

Allura shifted, sitting back up and bringing a hand to gently graze his cheek, so similar to what he’d seen in that hallucination, but so different all the while.

“Get some rest Lance. I’ll see you again tomorrow.”

He wanted to tell her ‘goodnight’, that he was happy for the friendship they both earned, to not ever dare tell anyone what a sap he secretly is;

But he decided to let his eyes fall shut instead, knowing he’d have the opportunity to tell her all this and then some tomorrow, and in the days to come.

******

**Author's Note:**

> and this is #5 and the last (for now)of the angst prompts!  
> this was probably my favourite one to write tbh :^))
> 
> if you'd like to send me any other prompts/drop by and say hi, my tumblr's dontmindme-imafangirl.tumblr.com
> 
> hope you like the series and kudos/comments are always appreciated <3


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